Grom Hellscream

Grommash "Grom" Hellscream was the chieftain of the Warsong clan, the first orc to drink the blood of the demon Mannoroth and, years later, the orc who killed him. His life traces the arc of the orcs' corruption and redemption, and the Horde remembers him as its greatest hero. In Classic he is dead, but his monument stands in Ashenvale, Horde players honor him during the Harvest Festival, and his Warsong clan still cuts the Ashenvale forest.

Biography

The blood of Mannoroth

On Draenor, Grom led the Warsong clan, famous for his ear-splitting battle cry. When Ner'zhul told the clans that the draenei were their enemies, Grom was among the first to call for war. Later, when Gul'dan gathered the chieftains to drink from a chalice of demon blood, Grom drank first. The blood of the pit lord Mannoroth filled the orcs with rage and strength, and bound them to the Burning Legion.

Gul'dan manipulated Grom into staying on Draenor during the Second War, so the Warsong never fought the Alliance in that war. When Ner'zhul reopened the Dark Portal, Grom fought on the Azeroth side, and when the portal was destroyed he and his clan were trapped. For nearly fifteen years they hid in the wilds of Lordaeron, while Grom fought off the lethargy that had broken the orcs in the internment camps.

Thrall's friend

When a young escaped slave named Thrall found him, Grom saw something in him and took him in. Grom and the Warsong joined Thrall and Orgrim Doomhammer in freeing the camps, and after Doomhammer's death Grom followed Thrall as Warchief. When the Horde sailed for Kalimdor in the Third War, Grom's Warsong clan was sent to gather lumber in Ashenvale. The night elves attacked them for cutting their sacred forest, and the demigod Cenarius came to drive them out.

Desperate, Grom found a pool tainted by demon blood and drank. His clan followed. With their new fury they killed Cenarius, and then Mannoroth himself appeared to claim them.

Redemption and death

Jaina Proudmoore and Thrall captured Grom and used a soul gem to draw the demon's hold out of him. Grom learned from Thrall that it was Mannoroth's blood that had cursed the orcs from the start. Together they hunted the pit lord down in a canyon in Ashenvale. Grom struck the killing blow with his axe Gorehowl, and Mannoroth's death freed the orcs from the blood curse. Grom died of his wounds in the explosion, at peace.

In World of Warcraft

Grom's resting place is Demon Fall Canyon in southeastern Ashenvale, where a stone monument marks the spot of Mannoroth's fall. Demons of the Burning Legion still haunt the canyon, led by the dreadlord Diathorus the Seeker. The inscription on the monument, signed by Thrall, says Grom bought the orcs' freedom with his blood.

Honoring a Hero

During the Harvest Festival, the orc Javnir Nashak in Orgrimmar gives Horde players the quest Honoring a Hero. Players carry [Grom's Tribute] to the monument in Demon Fall Canyon and place it at the base, then return for the reward, [The Horde's Hellscream]. The quest text calls Grom the hero who best represents strength and sacrifice among all the Horde's heroes.

The Warsong clan

The Warsong are still loggers in Ashenvale. They run Warsong Lumber Camp in eastern Ashenvale, supplied from Splintertree Post, and fight the night elves across the forest. The battleground Warsong Gulch is built around this feud: the Warsong Outriders fight the Silverwing Sentinels over the lumber operation, and in Warsong Supplies Locke Okarr of the lumber camp sends players as far as Booty Bay to restock the saws, axes, oil and rope.

Later history

• In The Burning Crusade, Thrall met Grom's son Garrosh among the Mag'har in Nagrand and told him the truth of his father's heroism. Garrosh later became Warchief of the Horde, and he carried Gorehowl.
• In Warlords of Draenor, players meet an alternate-timeline Grommash who never drank the demon blood and leads the Iron Horde.
• In Dragonflight, Grom's spirit appears among other famous orcs during the Kosh'harg festival at Razor Hill.

Trivia

• His name Grommash means "giant's heart" in the orcish tongue, according to Thrall's inscription on his monument.
• Grom first appeared as a hero in Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal (1996).
• The cinematic of Grom killing Mannoroth plays near the end of the Warcraft III orc campaign.

Sources

• Grom Hellscream - Warcraft Wiki
• Monument to Grom Hellscream - Warcraft Wiki
• Honoring a Hero - Warcraft Wiki